


Dreamlike

by dorayaki



Category: Harvest Moon, Harvest Moon: Back To Nature, Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-30 09:32:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17221382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dorayaki/pseuds/dorayaki
Summary: "If she hasn't changed, then what's the alternative?"





	Dreamlike

Karen was the same as always.  
  
Or at least that’s what Popuri would _try_ to tell herself when she’d steal glances at her when she’d come over to hang out with Rick, _or_ when her parents would send her on an errand to the store, _or_ when they’d run into each other anywhere really; it was a small town after all, trips to the beach, to a store, or to the mountains were all chances to bump into practically anyone that lived there.  
  
But no matter how many times Popuri would look at her childhood friend, something puzzled her. The way Karen would adjust a lock of hair behind her ear and smile in Popuri’s direction when she’d catch her staring made her heart beat in a way she had never experienced before. And looking at her right now, she knew it was coming once again, but still _somehow_ managed to be caught off guard when the older girl’s kind but sharp gaze focused on her own.  
  
“You’ve been doing that a lot lately,” Karen said. “Is something troubling you? And don’t bother hiding it, we’ve known each other for too long for you to trick me.” She got one, two steps closer as she spoke, making Popuri’s heart race even faster as the distance shrank.  
  
“I’m fine!” Popuri blurted out a little _too_ loudly, immediately realizing that kind of answer wasn’t going to trick anyone, not even herself. “Well, maybe not _that_ fine, but I’ll figure it out.”  
  
Karen tilted her head slightly to the side and crossed her arms, eyebrows arching slightly in what looked like an apologetic expression; her sharp gaze softening.  
  
“Alright, I won’t force the issue then! It sounds like a big deal, not to mention I know how stubborn you are.” She said and turned around, ready to go back home. “ _But,_ if you ever need someone to talk to, you can count on me like always, keep that in mind.”  
  
And somehow, rather than comfort, those words spread an uncertain feeling through her chest all the way to her throat: a mix of warmth and uneasiness.  
  
————————————————————  
  
“I’m never going to figure it out, am I!” Popuri fell back dramatically, cotton candy hair in direct contact with the sand she’d been sitting on as she tried to sort her emotions out; something you would _NEVER_ catch her doing normally, do you have any idea how hard it is to do any kind of haircare in the countryside where the local supermarket sells mostly _seeds_ of all things? It’s not easy!  
  
The sound of the waves rocking gently mixed with Kai’s laughter as he watched the girl struggle. “I’ve never seen you like this before, you’ve got it bad, huh?”  
  
“Take me seriously for once, will you! This is no joke!” Her cheeks puffed in indignation as she sat back up, glaring daggers in the city boy’s general direction; not that he seemed to mind though, Kai just laughed again and brushed some of the sand off her hair.  
  
“Just chill for a minute and think, you’re telling me Karen hasn’t changed, and yet she has you face up on the beach, what’s the alternative?” Kai asked as he finished getting the sand off her hair, or well, as much as he could manage to at least.  
  
“Maybe… I changed instead?”  
  
“Now you’re getting somewhere, keep going from there and you’ll figure it out.” He stood up and brushed some sand off his pants. “I’ll go get you some juice from the store so you can cool off a little, but I bet by the time I’m back you’ll know what’s up.”  
  
Rolling her eyes in exasperation, Popuri nodded as he walked away, sand making crunching noises under his shoes. What’s that about, anyway? Was he right? They both grew up, that’s for sure, but as people, they were the same, just more mature. Rick would say Popuri’s maturity is questionable, but there’s no way she’d ask him for advice on something like this, he was a love struck fool around Karen after all; he’d get all shy around her, stumble on his own words and space out whenever they parted ways. He would make it so obvious, how he’d be aware of all her mannerisms and get lost in them. _Wait a minute._  
  
“It can’t be!”  
  
“Woah! You scared me! I almost dropped the cup, did you sit on another crab? Told you last time to look where you sit around here, those guys pinch hard and you know it.” Paying no special attention to Popuri’s face, which was as white as paper as the blood drained from it, he handed her the cup full of pineapple juice and waited for a response.  
  
“I think I have the biggest, most obvious crush on her, don’t I?” Her own voice came out as something resembling a squeak, throat suddenly and somehow dry. No better time to down the cup of juice in one gulp than now.  
  
“See, didn’t I say you’d figure it out before I got back?” Kai’s already present grin widened as he gave the lovestruck girl a pat on the back.  
  
————————————————————  
  
It took Popuri some more time to get her thoughts and feelings in order; she told Rick he’d be in charge of her share of the work for a while and even though she could hear him complain as she walked away in a way that could only be compared to a horror movie zombie, she didn’t turn around once, she had too much to think about to pay him any attention.  
  
As a fairly impulsive person, if this had been any other kind of situation, Popuri wouldn’t have hesitated to run and let her thoughts, feelings or opinions out in the open and for the other person to figure out what to do with them, but this was different. Love was an ideal, something she’d classify as dreamlike, kind of like her fantasies of going to the city. A future yet not immediate goal. And it was this line of questioning that eased her worries slightly. This was a crush, right? Sort of a prelude to love? It was either taking  a chance or trying to wait and see if it faded.  
  
And with those thoughts in mind, she steeled herself to talk to Karen about her feelings.  
  
————————————————————  
  
“I knew you’d come around! I do take some pride in my advice, just wait in my room for a bit, I’ll tell my mom we’re having some girl talk and to not barge in and interrupt.” The way Karen took a hold of her hand, and walked Popuri from the entrance of the supermarket all the way to her room all felt like it happened in one swift motion that took no time at all. And suddenly, Popuri turned pink all the way to her ears as she fidgeted, overly aware of everything in the room that reminded her of the girl she liked. As soon as her nose picked up on the familiar scent of a sweet, fruity fragrance that was probably Karen’s perfume, the door to the room swung open.  
  
“You scared me! Did you run all the way back here?” Popuri put a hand over her chest, corset feeling tighter than usual, probably because her heart threatened to jump out of her chest for a second there.  
  
“Oh, please, you’ve been keeping this in for like a solid season now. The sooner we talk about it the better, not to mention I can’t deny my curiosity.” Karen said, smiling brightly and doing the one motion that probably was the first to captivate Popuri; tucking a strand of hair behind her ear delicately.  
  
“Okay… okay! Um, so… Karen,” Feeling expectant eyes burning into the side of her head as her crush sat right next to her, Popuri could feel her face flushing. “Do you… do you like Rick?”  
  
And silence fell into the room. An awkward kind of silence. You could probably hear Rick doing Popuri’s chores back at the farm if you strained your ears. Until a sigh felt like it echoed into the room.  
  
“Did he send you to ask me that? I’d expect him to tell me in person,” Putting a hand to her forehead, Karen sighed again before continuing. “He already told me once, and my answer hasn’t changed, he’s a good friend but that’s it, he probably told you that before tasking you with asking me, right?”  
  
Popuri shook her head almost violently and then shook her own hands in front of her face before opening her mouth. “No! _No no no_ , I was just curious, I didn’t even know he asked you out! Consider it a warm up question before I get to the point!”  
  
Rising an eyebrow quizzically, Karen put her hands back to her sides again and looked at the girl next to her before nodding. “Okay, oops, I’ll have to apologize to him later then, if you didn’t know about that I shouldn’t have told you, privacy and all.”  
  
_Ahem._ She cleared her throat and continued. “But no, I don’t see him that way? He’s just a friend, my best friend. Like part of the family, you could say.”  
  
And that’s when Popuri felt her heart sink into her stomach instead of jumping out like earlier. Does that leave her in the same spot then? Or in a similar classification? A little sister? Well… if Rick could do it, so could she, Popuri thought. So she clenched her fists and looked up at her crush who was sitting comfortably next to her.  
  
“Then, what about me?”  
  
Karen tilted her head in response.  
  
“I know we didn’t play as much as you did with Rick as kids, but we’ve known each other long enough you could only see me like that too, I mean, because,” Popuri took a quick breath in and then without any sort of volume control just decided to pour her feelings out. “I REALLY LIKE YOU!! Like not _just as a friend_ like you, like in a _you’re so pretty time passes when I look at you_ like you, right into _I want to be with you_ kind of like you!”  
  
Silence, once again. But once Karen felt the bed shake as Popuri tried to make her escape, she put her hand over hers and held on tightly.  
  
“You need to wait for a response with stuff like this.” After making sure the rosy haired girl settled down a little, she took her hand back and put it on top of her shoulder, doing the same with her other hand so she could turn her and face her directly.  
  
Karen smiled and gently rested her forehead against Popuri’s, and with a short laugh that expressed warmth anf affection, she gave her a response.  
  
“I like you too; _in the same way_ , specifying, just in case.”  
  
Popuri had to replay those words about five times in her own head before they sank in, and as soon as they did she wrapped her arms around Karen and squeezed, resting her head on her shoulder, the smell of berries surrounding her even more intensely than before. “Does that mean… you’re my girlfriend now?” She asked, shyly.  
  
“Yes, and we don’t even have to tell my parents, since they already know.”  
  
Breaking the hug slowly and hesitantly, it was Popuri’s turn to tilt her head in confusion.  
  
“You asked me out by yelling and the walls are kind of thin, I’d be surprised if my mom and dad weren’t glued to the door right now trying to listen in.” And as if to prove her point, the sound of a pair of feet could be heard from outside the door, getting distant, probably meaning the person on the other side was making a quick escape.  
  
Karen spent the next 15 minutes rubbing Popuri’s back as she contemplated digging herself a grave on the beach instead of leaving the room and saying hi to her girlfriend’s parents, all while the very girlfriend in question gave her reassuring words in between laughs.


End file.
